Atalanta booked their place in the Champions League last 16 in astonishing fashion – scoring a last-minute penalty to knock out Borussia Dortmund after one of their players were booted in the face.
In an extraordinary final few minutes in Bergamo that saw referee Jose Martinez send off Dortmund star Ramy Bensebaini for a dangerous foul, Lazar Samardzic stepped up and rifled his penalty into the top corner with the last kick of the game.
Seemingly furious at the decision, defender Nico Schlotterbeck – who did not come off the bench – and a member of the German side’s staff were also red carded in the chaos.
Samardzic’s goal put the Italians 4-1 up – and 4-3 on aggregate – in the eighth minute of second-half injury time on Wednesday evening, securing a dramatic turnaround after their defeat in Dortmund last week.
There was visible concern inside the stadium after Bensebaini’s boot connected with the face of Atalanta forward Nikola Krstovic, leaving the Montenegrin covered in blood and requiring urgent medical treatment.
But he got back to his feet in enough time to celebrate his team’s sensational winner, which will guarantee the Serie A outfit a crunch match against Arsenal or Bayern Munich in the next round.
Atalanta were awarded a late penalty after Dortmund defender Ramy Bensebaini’s boot connected with the face of Nikola Krstovic
Krstovic was left on a heap in the ground, covered in blood and requiring medical attention
Lazar Samardzic scored the late penalty to knock Dortmund out of the Champions League
Much of the discourse heading into the tie focused on the prospect that a defeat for Atalanta would mean no Italian club had reached the Champions League last 16 for the first time since the 1987-88 season.
With Raffaele Palladino’s side losing 2-0 in the reverse fixture at the Signal Iduna Park last Tuesday, the task was difficult but far from insurmountable.
And when former West Ham striker Gianluca Scamacca put Nerazzurri 1-0 up within the first five minutes, before the lead was added to by ex-Chelsea defender Davide Zappacosta, Atalanta had levelled the affair in no time.
They were even three goals to the good thanks to a Mario Pasalic strike but Dortmund were not content to make this a straightforward affair, and pulled one back after 75 minutes through Karim Adeyemi.
But the chaotic final few minutes, and Samardzic’s cool composure to slot the ball home from 12 yards, kept the Italian record intact.
The result also makes Atalanta the first side since Liverpool to overturn a two-goal deficit in the first-leg of a Champions League tie. The Reds achieved the same aggregate score with a famous 4-0 win over Barcelona after trailing 3-0 in May 2019.
It is fair to say that this evening will live as long in the memories of the Atalanta support as that famous night at Anfield did.
